The Party
by MarauderLife
Summary: Lily wakes up with a hangover, a smug best friend, and a mark on her neck of unknown origins. But...a hangover? Lily doesn't drink!
1. Innocent Mark

**Author's Note:** author? :D First of all, thank you. Really. Thank you for reading this. Second, please review. Reviews are like rainbow cookies. Basically, amazing. Third, much as I wish, these characters, places, etc. do NOT belong to me, but to the queen, J.K. Rowling. Sad, heartbreaking, but true. Not mine. Now, onward!

Lily opened her eyes and groaned. Her head pounded. The lights were too bright. Her surroundings were blurry. And her best friend was jumping on her four poster bed.

"Damn it, Dor," Lily croaked, rubbing her eyes gingerly. Dorcas Meadows, a tall, slim, brunette beauty, merely giggled in response and continued to jump. "Why are you waking we up so bloody early, anyway? It's Saturday," Lily muttered, sitting up slowly.

"It's not early, Lils. It's almost noon!" Dorcas replied happily. Lily peered at her friend through half-closed eyes. She held up a hang to her forehead in the hopes that a cool touch would sooth her pounding headache, but to no avail. Instead, she found a tangled mess of hair that felt as if several birds had nested in it.

"Ugh," Lily huffed, swinging her legs over the side of her bed. She shoved Dor onto the floor, and stood up.

"Hey. Watch it, buddy. You should be nice to the person that held your hair as you puked for two hours last night," Dorcas replied, pouting. Lily laughed hoarsely, and walked over to examine herself in the mirror on the back of the bathroom door, hoping she didn't look as bad as she felt.

"You know I don't drink. I have, in fact, never touched a drop of—," Lily stopped and gaped at her reflection. Looking back at her was a slender girl of 5'5", with creamy white skin and a smattering of freckles. Large, bright green eyes stood out against the pale face, and contrasted with wavy, auburn hair that fell several inches below her shoulders. Generally, Lily was well groomed and extremely pretty, according to the male _and_ female population at Hogwarts (though grudgingly admitted by the latter category). However, standing in front of the mirror, she frankly looked quite scary.

Large, dark bags loomed beneath her eyes, and her skin was clearly clammy. Her hair was knotted and frizzy, and there was a—"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS THAT?" Lily screamed. Innocently sitting on her neck, almost hidden beneath her curls, was a mark. A very obvious mark. "Is that….a _hickey_?" Lily asked, stunned.

"Yup!" Dorcas replied grinning, with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. "Betcha don't know who gave it to you." Lily turned around and looked at her friend. If looks could kill, Dorcas would have turned to dust in a fraction of a second.

"Tell me everything. Now."


	2. Aching Butt

**Authors Note:** Thanks to _LadyGrint68_, _JesusFreak98_, _JazzLunatica_, and _thebritish-elle_ for your lovely reviews! Have a *cyber chocolate frog* as thank yous. Again…don't own these characters, etc. Sad. Miserable. True.

Lily stomped down the 7th year's girls' dormitory staircase and across the sunny, warm, common room. It was filled with chattering people enjoying a relaxing Saturday afternoon in front of a crackling fire. The snow on the grounds outside reflected sunlight into the tower, making it brighter than usual. The lovely weather did _not_ match Lily's mood.

Her so-called "best friend" had refused to tell her anything about the night before. All Lily could remember was that the party had been in honor of Catherine Sanstone's 17th birthday, thrown by the Marauders, and had resulted in a hickey and dark bags under her eyes, both of which were extremely difficult to fully cover up.

"Lily, the Marauders are starting a snowball fight in front of the greenhouses in an hour! Want to come?"

"Hey Lily, James and Sirius are throwing another party, for a Ravenclaw girl this time. You know Jacqueline Clancy? It's for her!"

"Lils, we're having a party tomorrow night. James is going to bring firewhisky!"

"NO!" Lily all but shouted. "I DON'T want to do ANYTHING with the MARAUDERS!" She flung open the portrait door, much to the dismay of the Fat Lady, who was enjoying a glass of wine to celebrate the coming holidays.

"Young lady. Young lady! I would prefer if I was not unhinged as you pass me!" she cried out, disgruntled. But Lily was in no state of mind to listen, and stormed off through hall, not noticing where her feet were taking her.

Oh, how she detested them, the Marauders. Well, to be fair, Remus wasn't so bad. More mature, reserved, and focused on his studies, Remus Lupin was the least annoying of the four boys, in Lily's point of view. With shaggy, dirty blond hair, and clear blue eyes, he was mysterious and attractive. He, like the other three boys, had his own fan club of girls.

Then there was Peter. Lily didn't much mind Peter Pettigrew either, though he did have the unfortunate habit of staring at her legs a bit too often. He mostly just followed around the other three boys, basking in their glory, and reaping the rewards of their popularity. He also had a fan club, albeit a small one.

Lily walked past a statue of Gumphrey the Great, a wizard king of the 12th century known for his slightly worrisome infatuation with garden gnomes. Clustered nearby were five girls, talking excitedly.

"I hooked up with James last night. He was _so_ into me!"

"Well Sirius Black flirted with me for a whole hour at Sanstone's party yesterday!"

Lily hurriedly moved away from the group with a dark look on her face. Trust those idiots to discuss the two prats she hated most at Hogwarts, except perhaps those slimy Slytherins who were far too immersed in the Dark Arts for her comfort.

James Harry Potter and Sirius Orion Black. Brothers in all but blood, the two 7th years were devilishly good looking, ridiculously smart, and innovative, infamous pranksters. They led the Marauders and, in essence, ruled the school. Black, with his deep blue eyes, silky black hair, and tan, slim, muscular frame, was a modern day Greek god. Potter, also tan and lean, with muscles chiseled to perfection, had dark, ever messy hair that fell over bright hazel eyes, framed by long, thick lashes that made almost every girl in the castle swoon. _Almost_ every.

Lily hated the two of them with a burning passion. Particularly James. She hated that they jinxed people for no reason. She hated that they strutted like they owned the castle. She hated that their arrogance was not challenged, except by her. She hated that they were intelligent and good looking. Why did they deserve such attributes given the mean things they did?

Consumed in angry thoughts about the Marauders, worsened by the bad mood brought on by her hangover, Lily eventually found herself standing in front of a painting of a bowl of fruit. She smiled suddenly, glad that she was at the entrance to the kitchens, and excited to relax in front of a fire and eat comfortably in peace and quiet. She reached out to tickle the pear, which she knew would turn into a doorknob and grant her access, when—SMACK.

Lily found herself sitting on the floor, with an aching butt and arm to match her aching head. "Bloody hell! I'm so sorry. I wasn't paying atten…att…a…" The boy stuttered off into silence. Lily looked up. And there he was, the bane of her existence, James Potter. He looked as smug as usual, arrogant, and…wait.

"Why are blushing?" Lily asked confused, still sitting down.

"He's in a bit of an awkward situation," put in Black, who appeared in the doorway behind James. With grace unmatched by any dancer, he leaned towards her and held out a hand to help her stand. Lily huffed and pushed herself up, refusing the aid.

"And why is that, may I ask?" Lily replied scathingly. "Hook up with someone last night and have to face the consequences?" Potter and Black's reputation was known, and yet admired. Every girl wanted them, despite complete knowledge that they were being used. Every guy wanted to _be_ them, and have the entire female population of the school at their fingertips.

But at Lily's comment, James didn't make a witty remark. He turned white. White, as if dead. He stared at her for several seconds with a terrified expression on his face, then abruptly turned and walked away. Sirius, without a backwards look, walked after him.

"What the bloody hell was that about?" Lily whispered to herself, before turning to enter the kitchens, where an army of house elves was happily waiting to thrust food upon her.


	3. Convenience of a Stalker

**Authors Note:** Oh you beautiful, wonderful people that review my story. *Cyber chocolate frogs* for:

_shizuku-chama_ , _EnterNameHere9999_ , _maraudersgal333_, _SophieeeeXD_ , and _DreamerofDreams56_. *Sighh* disclaimer: I don't own the gorgeous, fabulous characters that appear in the story.

"Hi Lily!" came an excited voice. Lily started, sitting up in the plush, red velvet covered comfy chair she had pulled next to the fireplace in the kitchens. Surrounding her were several tables piled with food, courtesy of the house elves. She looked around for the source of the noise, pushing back mussed hair that had come loose from her ponytail as she slept.

"Oh. Hi Kaylie," she replied warily, eyeing the small, blond, pigtailed third year Gryffindor standing beside her chair. Kaylie was a hyperactive 13 year old with an extreme addiction to the color pink and an obsession with Lily. Two years ago, Lily had stopped three first year boys from dying Kaylie's hair black (her least favorite color). Since then, Kaylie had stuck to her like a bur.

In the beginning, it was sort of sweet. But when Lily woke up to find that Kaylie had set up a cot next to her bed, she decided it was getting out of hand. Unfortunately, nothing could really stop Kaylie. Even as Head Girl, a position Lily had been dying for since first year, she couldn't forbid Kaylie to do anything, which meant continuous popping of her personal space bubble.

"I saw you at the party last night! You were really—oh. Wait, never mind. So how are you?" Kaylie looked slightly ashamed, but was quickly back to her bubbly self. Lily looked at her with fresh eyes. Kaylie could tell her what had happened! Finally, the girl's stalking of her every move could be put to good use!

"Kaylie. You _have_ to tell me what happened at the party. _Please,"_ Lily begged desperately. "I….I'll let you sit with me at lunch for a _week_! A whole _week_!" At this, Kaylie's eyes widened and she smiled widely.

"Really? For a whole week? Okay! You kissed! And…some other stuff. And then I think some _other_ stuff, but that's just rumours. I dunno for sure." Kaylie looked quite pleased with herself for having given her idol such important information.

"I _know_ I kissed someone, Kaylie, hence the filthy mark on my neck," Lily said, aggravated. "But _who_ the _bloody hell_ did I _kiss_? And do…other….stuff….with…." This time Kaylie looked a bit less happy. In fact, a bit nervous. She chewed on her bottom lip.

"I'm sorry, Lily. But…he paid me not to tell you!" Kaylie said reluctantly. "And it wasn't just money! No, he promised me one pink cupcake every day for the next month! How was I supposed to turn that down? How?" she asked sadly, looking up at Lily with her large blue eyes.

Lily melted. She knew she shouldn't have, but she couldn't help it. "Okay, Kaylie. It's alright. I understand. Just, can you tell me _who_ it is that paid you not to tell me who I kissed? That's all. Not who I kissed, just who doesn't want me to find out."

"I can tell you that, easy. James is the person who _paid_ me! But…that doesn't mean I told you who you kissed and stuff… does it? Oh. Oops. I hope I still get the cupcakes…"

Lily felt her stomach plummet.

"No. Bloody. Fucking. Way."


	4. Humiliation of a Snog

_I kissed James Potter_. _James Potter and I kissed. Last night, me and Potter snogged, hooked up, exchanged saliva._ No matter what words Lily used to express the event, it seemed just as insane. She drifted from the kitchen back up to the Gryffindor Tower, stunned beyond belief.

"Heyyyy Lils. Where've you been all day? Me and Tasha are in the RoR. We're setting up for Trish's party next week. Wanna help?" Dorcas shouted at Lily from the bottom of a moving staircase. Natasha Frank and Tricia Lewinski were two of Lily's other three dormmates (the third being the blue-eyed blond slag Catherine Sanstone), and Tricia was turning 17 the next week. The Room of Requirement proved itself the perfect, most accommodating place to throw a celebration.

Lily turned to look at her friend with icy green eyes. One look at her stony expression and Dorcas promptly turned and jumped the remaining foot to the landing, yelling over her shoulder, "Sorry, Lils, but he paid me in eyeliner! Brand new every month for the next year! Couldn't have told you!" Within several seconds, Dorcas had disappeared down a hallway, away from the wrath of her friend.

Lily stomped up to the Fat Lady, practically screaming "MANDRAKE!" in her fury. The Fat Lady, very disgruntled (this being the second time that day that Lily had been rude to her), slowly opened the portrait. Lily walked into the common room, only to find _every_ single pair of eyes glued to her.

"_What?_ What do want? To humiliate me? To make me admit that _yes _I drunkenly snogged James Potter, after hating him for six years? Go ahead! See if I care! You stupid, nosy, immature, shallow _prats_!" Lily shouted. She was mortified to find tears springing to her eyes in her shame and anger. She stalked over to the girls' staircase, pointedly looking away from the stunned Sirius, Remus, and Peter, sitting by the fireplace. She walked up without a backward glance or remark, ignoring the stares being directed at her from every corner of the room. Throwing open her dormitory door, she was relieved to find no one inside. She flung herself onto her soft bed, cast a Silencio charm, and yanked her red curtains shut, before sobbing into her pillow.

Lily Evans had been enemies with James Potter since day one. He had called her carrot top (due to hair color), Christmas Cathy (due to hair and eye color), and freckle face (self-explanatory), all on the first day of school when they had sat next to each other at the start of year feast after being sorted into Gryffindor. Lily retaliated by calling him mop top (due to messy hair), which only made him happier. She continued to dislike him, particularly when she saw him behave with other people in the same rude and prideful manner he had with her. It was dislike in the beginning, but not hate.

What really pissed off Lily, and brought her hard feelings to the next level, was in fourth year when James realized that Lily was not just someone to annoy…but a _girl_. A popular girl. A popular, smart girl. A popular, smart, _pretty_ girl. James decided it was time to switch tactics. On average, James would ask out Lily ten times a week. The least number of times was two, and that was when he had been shut up in the Infirmary after getting his arm smashed with a bludger. Still, he had managed it in the form of two humiliating Howlers sent to Lily during breakfast in the Great Hall. The greatest number of times was fourteen. That week was one of the worst in Lily's life up to that point.

Girls left and right were absolutely horrible to Lily during her fourth and fifth years, jealous of the attention James gave her. But by sixth, they realized that Lily truly did not and would never reciprocate James' affections, particularly after the infamous day by the Black Lake at the end of fifth year, when Lily blew up at James for childishly provoking her childhood friend (turned Death Eater-in-training) Severus Snape. After that day, James left Lily well alone. Mostly. And Lily tended to ignore or insult him.

It was their history that made their drunken hookup so upsetting to Lily. She felt like just another pathetic slag looking for a one-night shag with the hottest guy at school. She felt like all her effort into showing people that bullying and arrogance was not admirable was wasted. She felt like her Head Girl position was a joke and that people had lost all respect for her. She felt…she felt like shit.

Lily cried right up until sleep claimed her, two hours after she lay down. Her face was streaked with tears, and her expression troubled. The other girls came up quietly to bed, and quickly were fast asleep.

Some three hours later, the dormitory door creaked open, so quiet as to be almost unheard. It shut soon after, though by no seen hand. The curtains around Lily's bed slid open and then closed, and the corner of her mattress sunk slightly as if a person had sat down. James pulled off his invisibility cloak.

"Lily. Lily, wake up. We need to talk," he whispered.


	5. Scarier Than A RevengeSeeking Angel

Lily didn't wake up when James whispered her name. So James took the opportunity to stare at her, without a rebuke or insult thrown his way. He admired the brightness of her hair against the white pillow. He watched her rosy mouth curl into a soft smile as she slept. She was peaceful and happy, drifting among dreams.

"Oh sodding hell," James squeaked, as Lily rolled over onto her right side, exposing a fair amount of stomach as her tank rode up past her belly button. She shook her head slightly, confused in her sleep at the interrupting sound. James started to hyperventilate. Rocking back and forth like a house elf who had insulted his master, he wrung his hands and squeezed his eyes shut, not wanting to face the conversation that was sure to follow.

"James?" came a soft voice. James jumped, sitting up straight with eyes wide open, staring at the Lily, whose eyes were still clearly closed. She had spoken in her sleep. "James," she whispered again. James almost fainted. Was she….dreaming about him? The possibility was enough to make him almost fall off the bed. Instead, he did the opposite.

Risking possible maiming and/or death, he whispered, "Yes, Lily?" and stretched himself out beside her on the bed. He froze. Lily's hand slid across the bed, coming closer, and closer, and closer, until it touched his. With more concentration than James had ever invested in an exam, prank, or Quidditch match, he slipped his callused fingers through hers. Everything was perfect—

He choked unromantically. Lily had thrown her left leg over his hip, and shifted her head from her pillow to his chest. She was curled up against him. James was about to physically keel over and die. Two consecutive nights in the warm embrace of Lily Evans? Bloody dream come true!

James settled down to sleep, preferring to enjoy the present and think about the consequences when they smacked him hard in the morning. Possibly literally.

"_JAMES POTTER!_"

James fell off the bed. He hit the ground with a loud thump, and howled with pain, effectively waking whoever in the dormitory had still managed to stay asleep after such a screech. He kept his head down for several seconds, putting off the inevitable, before slowly raising it to face his doom.

Lily looked positively frightening. James almost pissed his pants. Her hair stuck up around her head like a lion's mane. Her eyes were narrowed to slits, only a glint of green shining through. Fists clenched, cheeks flushed, and back ramrod straight, she stood above the fallen James like a terrible angel come to punish the Earth for its sins. Except a bloody hell of a lot scarier. Catherine, Dor, Tasha, and Trish, still in their sleeping attire, almost trampled each other in their haste to escape through the dormitory door.

"What the _bloody hell_ do you think you're doing," Lily snarled furiously. James didn't have the balls to even twitch a response. He looked at her with a twisted, fearful expression that Lily would have found extremely funny, had she not been _so_ very angry.

Summoning up all his courage, he tried to reply, "I'm so sorry," but managed only a feeble sound between a croak and squeak. It didn't impress Lily…..whatsoever.

"Ex_cuse_ me? What was that? Because it sure as hell did _not_ sound like an explanation for WHY YOU WERE SLEEPING IN MY BED, YOU _STUPID_ WANKER!" she screamed. "YOU HAVE A _LOT_ OF EXPLAINING TO DO!"

James winced. He would probably go deaf fairly soon. "Euh…I….euh…"

"START TALKING!" Lily clearly didn't care about his

"Weeeell….what do you want to know?" James asked nervously, arranged himself cross legged on the red carpet next to Lily's bed.

"Let's start from the beginning, shall we?" Lily replied threateningly. "Care to explain, _Potter_, why there are rumours flying around the school about our activity at Sanstone the Slut's party?"

"Ah. Y-yes." James answered, stuttering. "Well…Sirius thought it'd be funny to get the first years drunk, and you know they only drink the punch. So he spiked the punch bowl with Ogden's Best Firewhisky." Lily looked murderous. "And, euh, I guess you also don't generally drink, so you had the punch too…"

"Oh, no. No, no, no. It's not that I don't _generally_ drink, Potter. I _never_ drink. You and your _filthy_ friends may have built up a tolerance to an inconceivable amount of alcohol, but I haven't. _That's_ why I was hung over. I must have had 10 glasses!" Lily exclaimed angrily. "Alright. So I was drunk. _Then_ what happened. Because I sure as hell didn't willingly touch you!" James looked embarrassed. "_What_?" Lily demanded.

"Youkinoftackee," James muttered quickly, and then turned red realizing he was intelligible.

"I'm _sorry_? Repeat?"

"You…..kind of….att—attacked me," he managed to get out. Lily paled.

"I did….._what_?"


	6. Bet

**A/N: **Don't kill me! Too young to die, and all that jazz. –insert lots of desperate pleading for life here- It's _so late_. I know. Like 10000000000000 times too late. But that's what happens when you apply to college. Your time is sucked away. Sucked away I tell you! Anyway, this is the last chapter! Crazy, right? It's crazy to me. I'll have some more info on what my next projects will be at the end of the chapter. Aaaaand, none of this amazing content belongs to me, unless it's just completely mad and incomprehensible. Then it's probably original. Everything else is Queen Rowling's, who is, as a side note, my idol.

— 7th Year Girls' Dormitory—

"You…..kind of….att—attacked me," he managed to get out. Lily paled.

"I did….._what_?" She turned from white to bright red with embarrassment and anger. Her body started shaking with repressed fury. "James Potter, you bloody liar. I did absolutely no such thing. And if you're such a wanker that you choose to create such lies, then to _hell_ with you!" She would have continued on with her tirade, but James cut her off.

"Hey! _Hey!_ Would you quit your screeching, woman?" James' voice grew stronger, and Lily rocked back slightly, surprised. "I have proof. I have proof that you attacked me. Now will you continue to scream like a banshee, or hear me out?"

"I—I'll hear you out," she muttered, slightly ashamed, and more than slightly worried about this proof. She shuffled back and sat on her bed, leaning against the headboard. She tried to put as much space between her and James as possible, but frankly no distance was far enough for Lily. James stayed on the ground, far too nervous to dare approaching the bed once more.

"Okay. My proof is in witnesses."

"_Witnesses?_ All your witnesses are just your friends, who you _know_ will back up whatever hippogriff shit you come up with!" Lily exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at James. James smirked, much to Lily's annoyance. She couldn't abide his arrogance.

"Hmm. So that's what you think. Let's see about that." James clapped twice, loudly. Lily looked at him quizzically.

"At that was supposed to…," she asked mockingly. The dormitory door opened, and outside, trailing down the staircase and into the common room, was a long line of maybe twenty-five or so people. The first, who had pushed open the door at James' command, was Dorcas. "_Dor?_" Lily gasped. "You have to be kidding me! I can't believe you! You're lying for him? I thought we were best friends!"

"It's not lying, Lil…." Dorcas answered sheepishly, looking down at the floor. She peered up through her long eyelashes, gauging Lily's anger. She squeaked and ran out of the room.

"We are no longer friends, Dorcas. No longer friends, I tell you! _No longer!_" Lily shouted after her. Dorcas chose not to reply, and instead grabbed Tricia's arm, pulling her out of her place in the line, away from Lily's wrath. They hustled out the portrait wide-eyed and fearful.

Lily jumped off her bed and went to stand in front of the door, looking out at the people. "Do you mean to tell me that all of you saw me '_attack_' James? _ All_ of you? You weren't bribed or anything?" she demanded. All she got in return were awkward faces that looked everywhere but at her. "So you _were_ bribed. _Hah!_"

"Actually, Lily," came a bright voice. "We weren't bribed. The only reason people aren't talking is because it's rather explicit content! Explicit is a new word I learned today. I heard Sirius Black use it in the Common Room as he looked at a magazine. He was grinning."

_Of course_, thought Lily. _Of course it's Kaylie. Who else?_ She plastered a fake smile on her face, and looked down at the girl, completely dressed in pink, who had pushed her way to the front of the line. She was holding…you guessed it…a pink cupcake. Courtesy, no doubt, of one James Potter. It was the pink cupcake that did Lily in. She slammed the door shut in all their faces, and turned with to the wincing James, who was still on the ground.

James cowered, mentally prepared his apology-slash-please-don't-kill-me-I'm-only-seventeen-and-have-a-long-life-ahead-of-me-that-I-want-to-spend-with-you-and-will-you-bear-my-children-they-will-be-beautiful speech.

"Lily, I'm so sorry. I just wanted to prove my point! Please don't be mad at me and also I'm only seventeen and I really don't want to die, because I really do have a long life ahead of me, or at least I would if you don't kill me, and also will you please bear—"

"I'm not mad."

"I _know_! I know you're really mad, and I really didn't want you to be and I'm sorry I snogged you and this whole situation is horrible, but I mean the snog wasn't horrible –it was actually very nice, amazing really, and—" James stopped abruptly. "What did you say?" he questioned tentatively, not believing his ears. Perhaps Lily's earlier rant had in fact affected his hearing. Because there was no way that she had just said—

"James, I'm not mad. She moved quietly over to her bed and sat down gingerly, as if she was afraid she would crack if she moved too suddenly. James, on the other hand, sat up straight, staring at her with wide eyes.

"What do you mean you're not mad? Who are you? Who, I ask you!" James lunged forward and grabbed her shoulders shaking her vigorously. Lily growled and shoved him backwards onto the floor once more. James looked up sheepishly. "Sorry."

"I'm not mad, because clearly you have proof, proof in people that you surprisingly didn't bribe to be on your side. Also—also I remembered what happened during the party."

"You remember? What do you remember?"

"Everything. The spiked butterbeer, the—the dancing on the table. I remember that you grabbed my hand and pulled me off the table. I think you said you wanted to talk. We went and sat on the window seat over in the corner of the common room." Lily paused.

James moved silently over to sit next to her. She didn't try to push him away. "I remember you said that you had really strong feelings for me." She reddened slightly. "I didn't know what you were talking about."

James grinned. "Didn't you say that the feelings better have been strong because earlier that day you had convinced Catherine Sanstone that I did not, in fact, have a dragon tattoo on my arse? And that I ought to thank you for that?"

This time Lily turned crimson. "You can't blame me! I was….inebriated. Through no fault of my own. Stupid prick Sirius." She giggled though, through her anger. She grew less tense, and James began to relax beside her.

"I remember that you didn't let go of my hand when we sat down. We talked. I don't even know what we talked about. Just, lots of things." Her voice was softer. "How I didn't really think you were an arse anymore. How you had stopped hexing people for the fun of it. How I was tired of being uptight. How I thought I maybe had feelings for you too."

"I remember something," James admitted. Lily looked over at him, and arched an eyebrow.

"Hm?"

"We, er, were discussing what a child—our child—I mean, hypothetically, in the future, possibly, would look like." It was James' turn to blush. Lily laughed, and her voice startlingly loud in the quiet dormitory room.

"Yeah. We were, weren't we. It was a boy, right? A boy, and he would look just like you, but with my eyes." Lily's face moved a fraction closer to James'. "I had bet that's what he'd look like."

"And I disagreed. Still do. He'll be a redhead, I'm sure of it. Your auburn hair, but messy like mine, and my hazel eyes. I'll put twenty galleons on that." James chuckled and moved considerably closer to Lily. Her eyes widened slightly, but she didn't move back.

"Twenty galleons." Her voice was even quieter than before.

"So it's a bet?" James' voice was deep.

"It's not a bet if I know I'm ri—"

James leaned in and pressed his lips against hers, cutting her off. Lily was startled for only a moment, before succumbing to the inevitable. She closed her eyes and slid her arms around James' neck.

*Five Years Later*

Lily was incredibly worn out, yet somehow managed to retain her beauty. Her hair was damp and the curls limp, but the color was as vibrant as always. Her husband was nearly as fatigued as her, having been up 36 hours straight, following his wife's every request. Of course, James Potter looked flawless no matter what.

"He's perfect, Lils. Absolutely perfect. Have you decided on his name?" James asked quietly, sitting next to his wife's bed in the hospital room. He stared in awe at the little bundle in her arms.

"Harry," she whispered. "His name is Harry James Potter. Mama loves you Harry. " Lily smiled up happily at her husband of one year. James grinned down at her, and at his newly-born son.

"And Dada. Dada loves you too, Harry. Lily, he looks like I did when I was a baby. Except he has your beautiful emerald eyes," James remarked happily. Lily's head snapped up, and she met his gaze. A wicked grin slowly spread across her tired face. James looked confused for an instant.

"HOLY—," he began angrily.

"_James!_ No cursing in front of Harry." She laughed, all the while being sure not to jostle her son. "And pay up, my love."

**A/N:**

That's all, folks. Hope you enjoyed. I was asked to make it longer, so I tried. Still pretty short, but that's just one of many of its flaws. Anyway, it's a bit crazy for me that I actually managed to finish it.

So, future plans. I'll keep writing, of course. I certainly need the practice and experience. I'm in the mood to do some L/J one shots. I'm in the process of writing one right now. But who knows? One of them could turn into a five chapter, fifteen chapter, or fifty chapter story.

Everyone who takes the time to read my work is utterly brilliant and deserves a *cyber chocolate frog*. Also, reviews are like those fabulous sugar cookies with intense amounts of frosting on top. In short, amazing. So write one and I'll reply and thank you! I will, I will! The reply will either be direct, or posted on my profile, or both. Congratulations if you actually read through this rambling paragraph. I love you!

**Aside:** If you, for some mad reason, want to hear me write more rubbish, follow me on Twitter! Yes, I am shamelessly promoting myself. That's right, follow _hp_addict_ on Twitter, and get updates from me, all about Harry Potter. As the username suggests, I am, in fact, addicted to it.


End file.
